


We're Good

by kuro



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Conflict, Fluff, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-11
Updated: 2017-06-11
Packaged: 2018-11-13 00:20:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11173071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kuro/pseuds/kuro
Summary: So Keith and Lance weren’t actually on bad terms, or that was what Keith had come to believe, at least. Which made it all the weirder that Lance had been rather snippy lately.(Or, Keith and Lance try to figure out how to be friends with each other. They might not be very good at it.)





	We're Good

If he was entirely honest, Keith was the first to admit that he and Lance hadn’t really started off on the best of terms, and that they were both equally to blame for that. It hadn’t helped that Lance was very easy to get a rise out of, and sometimes, the temptation had simply proved to be too much…

But all their squabbling aside, Keith had honestly believed that they had been getting on much better lately. They often disagreed, that was basically a given, but it hadn’t escaped Keith’s notice that any of Lance’s comments had long stopped sounding sharp. They weren’t actually fighting or trying to hurt each other, at least most of the time. And sometimes, they even got along. Usually when they were busy trying to save the universe and defeat Zarkon. 

So Keith and Lance weren’t actually on bad terms, or that was what Keith had come to believe, at least. Which made it all the weirder that Lance had been rather snippy lately. That in itself was out of the ordinary, since Lance usually had no qualms in telling anyone exactly what he thought was wrong about any given situation. Keith usually knew exactly what he and Lance were currently fighting about, because Lance would tell what had incensed him in excruciating detail.

This time, however, Lance was just… snappish. Small jabs with impeccable timing and a hidden viciousness that left Keith speechless. Lance was always ready for a fight, but he didn’t do _this_.  

As with most things pertaining to Lance, Keith went to Hunk first. (After a lot of deliberation and headache, but Hunk didn’t need to know that.) He and Lance had known each other for the longest time, and Hunk had an insight into Lance’s character that the rest of them lacked, at least so far. Hunk was probably also the one Keith had the best chance of getting a straight answer from, because Hunk did not play games.

As so often, Hunk could be found in the strange room that was supposed to be an Altean kitchen. (Keith had no idea what some of the devices in there were even supposed to be used for, although Hunk seemed to handle them just fine.) When Keith arrived there, Hunk was just pulling something out of an oven that Keith hoped was a cake. The questionable aesthetics of Altean food aside, whatever Hunk produced was usually not just edible, but actually good. For that reason, Keitch didn’t even try to make a token protect when Hunk took one look at him and then proceeded to cut a slice of cake both for himself and Keith.

Before he knew, Keith found himself sitting at a table with Hunk, as if they were having their regularly scheduled, mannerly afternoon tea like a group of gossiping old ladies. Keith allowed himself one moment to wonder about the strangeness of the situation, but he quickly dismissed it. Everything about their current situation was strange, afternoon tea or no. They were in space, for quiznak’s sake, hunted by the most powerful person in the known universe.

“So,” Hunk asked after several silent bites of cake (it was _good_ , just as expected of Hunk), “what brings you here?”

The implied ‘There is something you must want, because I haven’t seen you set foot in the kitchen before, ever’ remained unspoken.

Fair enough, Keith figured. It was true, after all, it wasn’t like Keith usually went out of his way to seek out Hunk. He decided not to beat around the bush, either.

“Lance has been snappish lately,” he said, trying not to squirm in his seat too obviously. “I thought we were getting along better. Was it something I did?”

Hunk looked thoughtful for a moment, tapping his fork against his plate.

“He’s been off lately,” he eventually replied. “But I don’t think it’s because of you. He’s been rather short with me, too.”

That caught Keith’s attention. He’d been so preoccupied with whatever was going on between him and Lance that he hadn’t ever considered that something was up with Lance, in general.

“But… why would he be like that with you? You’re his best friend, aren’t you?” he asked.

“Uh, sure, but honestly, he’s always been super close with his family, so I’m probably not the one who’s _closest_ to him.”

“Do you think… he misses them?” Keith asked.

“Sure,” Hunk answered easily. “After all, I miss mine too.”

That made Keith pause and look at Hunk. Hunk didn’t really seem bothered by the admission, digging into his cake as if nothing had happened.

He’d never really thought about the fact that all the others had something to miss back on earth. Hunk and Lance had their families, probably also friends. Pidge, too. And while her father and brother were somewhere lost in space, she still had a mother back home that was certainly waiting for her to come back home. Keith only really had Shiro and a dagger that might have belonged to his Galra mother at some point. There was nothing waiting for him back on Earth, and so, he’d never thought about wanting to return, not when the answers to his origin were hidden somewhere out here in space. He had nothing to miss.

“Do you… want to go back?” Keith asked quietly. The cake was suddenly stuck in his throat.

“Yeah,” Hunk said, his expression darkening. “After all, we left without a word. Everyone must be worried sick by now. It’s not like we planned to leave Earth behind that day.”

He stared off into the distance for a moment, his mind a million miles away. Then he blinked and grinned.

“But we still have some stuff left to do here. We still have to defeat Zarkon. And I think Lance is planning on returning a hero, to be adored by the masses.”

Keith stared down at his plate of half-eaten cake. Thinking about it, he was sure that Lance would just want to go home, hero or no hero. If it was him…

“Keith,” Hunk interrupted his thoughts. When Keith looked up, Hunk was looking at him with a small smile. “It will be fine, don’t worry. And don’t forget to say ‘I forgive you’ when the time comes.”

“I don’t think-” Keith started to say, but Hunk had already gotten up, patted Keith’s shoulder, and went off to clear away his plate and cutlery.

* * *

Keith left the kitchen not very reassured. Sure, if Hunk thought that there was nothing to worry about, there probably was nothing to worry about, but still. That didn’t magically solve the problem.

“Hey, Keith!” came a voice at his back. When Keith turned around, Pidge was there, looking at him curiously. “You moonlighting in the kitchen now?”

“Nah,” Keith answered. “I just had… something to discuss with Hunk.”

“Ah, sure,” she said, tilting her head in a way that showed that she didn’t really get it and was hoping for further explanation.

“I just… do you miss your home?” Keith found himself asking.

Pidge’s eyes widened for a second before she hummed thoughtfully. “Sure I do. Is this about Lance? He’s been down lately.”

Not sure what to reply, Keith shrugged helplessly.

Pidge came closer and punched him in his arm lightly.

“Don’t worry about it,” she said with a small grin. “He’s being shitty about it, but he’ll feel sorry for it soon enough. Don’t tell him I said that though.”

“Sure, Pidge,” Keith mumbled. What was it about her that always made him feel seen through? Uncomfortable and somewhat unsettling, that was Pidge in analysis mode.

Pidge rolled her eyes. “Seriously, what is it with you guys? Lance is a dramatic diva, so he has to Suffer, capital letter included. And now you’re brooding. Can you all maybe stop?”

“I’m not _brooding_ ,” Keith denied a little petulantly, crossing his arms in front of him, scowling. It was true. He wasn’t. Just because he was the least hyper member of this group, it didn’t mean that he was broody.

“Sulking then.”

“Hey-”

“ _Mull_ ing.” Pidge groaned, slapping a hand over her face, nearly hitting her own glasses off her nose. “Oh god, I just made a Lance-level pun. End me now.”

“We still need the green paladin,” Keith answered without thinking.

“Thanks, Keith,” Pidge said, perking right up and preening a little. “At least _someone_ knows my worth.”

“I think all of us do.”

That made Pidge cackle. “Goddess, Keith, what did Hunk feed you?”

Keith chose not to reply. Pidge knew full well that Keith had been entirely serious when he’d said that, and that he wasn’t going to say it twice.

They stood there in the hallway for a moment, silent. Keith noticed that it wasn’t uncomfortable, like it had been sometimes at the garrison. Pidge was just okay with not talking for a moment, but also not eager to get away from Keith as soon as possible. He’d never really noticed that before. When had that changed, them becoming comfortable in each other’s presence?

“Do you miss your mother, Pidge?” Keith eventually found himself asking.

Pidge looked at him for a moment, eyes serious. Then she looked away, her face blank.

“Yes,” she whispered after a moment. “I really do.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault, _idiot_ ,” Pidge hissed, but it sounded more choked than she had probably intended. It sounded suspiciously like a snuffly nose. Keith stood there, kind of lost and unsure of what to do.

“Oh, go away already,” Pidge groaned. “I’m fine. Just… maybe we can talk about that topic never again?”

Keith stood there, rooted to the spot. He felt completely out of his depth and wanted to apologise, but he didn’t know how.

“Seriously dude, I’m fine, we’re fine, I just need a moment,” Pidge repeated, bumping Keith lightly. “Now if you excuse me, I can hear an unfinished experiment calling.”

The excuse was as transparent as glass, but Keith let her go, looking after her with conflicting emotions.

_What would it feel like to miss your mother?_

Keith didn’t know. 

* * *

Keith decided to work out in the hopes of getting his thoughts in order. Physical exercise shut off his muddled thoughts in the best ways, reducing everything to the next movement, the next breath, letting him forget everything that had been and what was still coming.

He was sweaty and exhausted by the end of the training, but the exertion left a satisfying feeling behind, as if he was ready to face anything. He went to take a quick shower and headed back towards his own room to rest for a moment before dinner. He’d learned pretty quickly that dinner was never a quiet affair with the paladins and Coran around (with Allura, it could go either way), so it was usually a good idea to recharge a little beforehand.

When he entered his room, however, someone was already there. Keith jumped a little, but then he saw that it was only Lance, lurking in a corner of the room.

It wasn’t really that much better, really, because Lance had never deliberately sought him out before. Especially not in his own room.

“Hey,” Lance said, sounding somewhat nervous, giving Keith an equally nervous handwave.

Keith was completely unprepared to face Lance so quickly after his talk with Hunk and Pidge, he said nothing and simply stood there, frozen in place.

“Uh, so, it has _come to my attention_ that I mayyy have been a major asshole lately,” Lance bravely soldiered on despite Keith’s silence, scratching the back of his head nervously.

_Thanks a bunch, Hunk_ , Keith thought uncharitably.

“I wanted to apologise, okay?” Lance said quickly. “I didn’t mean to be… like that. I’m really sorry. It wasn’t your fault.”

Keith’s first impulse was, of course, to argue, because that’s what they always did. It was their thing. They would argue, and then they would get along again. Eventually.

_And don’t forget to say ‘I forgive you’ when the time comes_ , Hunk had said.

Keith took a deep breath.

“I forgive you,” he said, clearly and loudly, looking Lance straight into the eyes.

“I–what?” Now it was Lance’s turn to look entirely taken by surprise. “You’re not arguing?”

“Do you _want_ me to argue?” Keith asked.

“Uh… no,” Lance said, looking startled at his own words. “Actually, I don’t.”

“Well, then it’s fine,” Keith said, shifting a little. Wow, this might just be a bigger adrenaline kick as his earlier training. His heart was positively hammering. “You apologised, I accepted the apology, all is fine. Can I take a nap now?”

Lance still looked shocked at the sudden turn of events. He had probably come, fully expecting and ready for a fight.

Was Keith really so unforgiving?

Lance seemed to finally recover from his shock and shook his head as if to get rid of it.

“Sure, I’ll leave you to it,” he said. “Dinner’s in an hour, you coming?”

“Yeah, sure,” Keith answered, a little confused. He always came for dinner, Lance didn’t need to ask.

“Great,” Lance smiled, some tension seeping out of his shoulders that Keith hadn’t noticed before. He spread his arms wide in an inviting gesture. “Conciliatory hug?”

Keith had never been the huggy type (who was he supposed to hug?), but he’d stepped forwards into Lance’s arms before he even realised what he was doing.

Lance was a good hugger, Keith realised. He hugged without hesitance, but also without the danger of being squished like when it came to Hunk’s infamous hugs. With sudden clarity, he had the realisation that actually, he didn’t mind being hugged. It might even be almost as good as riling Lance up. _Almost._

“So we’re good?” Lance asked after hugging for a while.

“Yeah, we’re good,” Keith replied. It should have been awkward, but he was getting a little sleepy from Lance’s body warmth, rather than uncomfortable.

“Great,” Lance said, squeezing a little harder before finally letting go. He smiled at Keith, the smile not quite a grin. “Now go get that sleep. Your eye bags look like they desperately need it.”

“Asshole,” Keith grumbled, punching Lance lightly into his side.

Lance only laughed, prancing towards the door.

“Sleep tight, princess!” he shouted over his shoulder, and then he was gone.

Of course Lance couldn’t resist having the last word.

Keith sighed, and let himself drop onto his bed. He was exhausted, and not just from the exercise. Maybe Hunk would get away with only some minor threats. If he was feeling charitable and Hunk made a good dinner.

He realised that he’d been smiling the whole time only when his eyes were already falling shut.


End file.
